Brotherly competition is something Graham Houston has known all his life. <\/p>\n
The Houston brothers have spent years pushing each other on the baseball field. Now, Graham is taking what he\u2019s learned from growing up alongside his older brother, Marek, into an opportunity of his own. <\/p>\n
After advancing through Phase 1, Graham returned for Phase 2 of 18U National Team Training Camp with another opportunity to compete for a spot on the national team, a process Marek has already experienced himself. <\/p>\n
Marek, a member of the 2024 Collegiate National Team who was selected by the Minnesota Twins in the first round of the 2025 MLB Draft, has given Graham a firsthand look at what it takes to reach the highest levels of the game. More importantly, he\u2019s helped his younger brother believe that he can get there, too. <\/p>\n
\u201cI never thought I\u2019d be able to accomplish those things, but seeing him doing it made me believe in myself,\u201d Graham said. \u201cI think him making me believe in myself is part of why I\u2019m here.\u201d<\/p>\n
Growing up with Marek meant every game, every practice, and every opportunity came with someone to chase. But as he\u2019s gotten older, Graham has come to understand that their relationship gave him something far more valuable than competition. <\/p>\n
It\u2019s given him belief. <\/p>\n
\u201cEvery time I see him, I always want to beat him,\u201d Graham said with a laugh. \u201cBut he\u2019s helped me realize to be able to believe in myself from the things that he\u2019s been able to accomplish.\u201d<\/p>\n
Now, Graham is getting the chance to experience a piece of that journey himself while remembering what it was like to watch his older brother. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt was just awesome to see him go through it,\u201d Graham said. \u201cIt\u2019s really cool to see someone I know and grew up with go through that process, it\u2019s something not many people have and it\u2019s very special.\u201d<\/p>\n
For Graham\u2019s family, the significance goes beyond baseball. <\/p>\n
Both of his parents served in the military, and growing up, Graham once envisioned following them into military service. Watching Marek represent his country through baseball has allowed the family to experience that same sense of service in a different way.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo be able to even just be a part of something with the country,\u201d Graham said. \u201cGrowing up, I wanted to be in the military, and I think just watching my brother go do something like that, and my parents go watch him, I think it all comes together in a way that\u2019s kind of special for our family.\u201d<\/p>\n
As Graham continues to build his own baseball career, he carries with him the lessons Marek has shared along the way. <\/p>\n
The biggest lesson: Trust yourself. <\/p>\n
\u201cKnow that you have put in the work. Know that you are very good,\u201d Graham said. \u201cAnd just, again, believe in yourself.\u201d <\/p>\n
That message has become especially important for Graham, who admits he has been hard on himself in the past. <\/p>\n
His brother helped him understand that perfection isn\u2019t the goal.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re not going to play good all the time,\u201d Graham said. \u201cBut believing in yourself is the biggest thing.\u201d<\/p>\n
That mindset has also helped Graham define the player and person he wants to be.<\/p>\n
Calm. Faith-driven. Present. <\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m very big in my faith,\u201d Graham said. \u201cKnowing that I\u2019ve already won in life, I don\u2019t have to perform or do anything more than just go out there and give it my best, because that\u2019s all I can really do.\u201d<\/p>\n
That perspective has allowed him to approach his game with less pressure and more joy. <\/p>\n
When he looks ahead, Graham isn\u2019t focused on trying to predict where baseball will take him. Instead, he wants to take things one day at a time and live in the present. <\/p>\n
It is the same approach he has brought with him to Phase 2 of 18U National Team Training Camp. <\/p>\n
Being selected for another phase of a national team training camp is an accomplishment in itself, but Graham knows everyone around him wants the same thing. <\/p>\n
\u201cOf course, everyone here wants to make the team,\u201d he said. \u201cSo it\u2019s just trusting yourself, knowing that you\u2019re here for Phase 2 for a reason.\u201d<\/p>\n
His experience in Phase 1 reinforced that mindset. Surrounded by talented players from across the country, Graham found value not only in competing against them, but in learning from them.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can learn a lot from other people and how they interact,\u201d he said. \u201cLearning from new kids, learning how they view baseball, what they do outside of baseball, relationships and talking to them and learning from a lot of these kids is something that you don\u2019t get anywhere else.\u201d<\/p>\n
That willingness to learn extends beyond the baseball field, just as his relationship with Marek has.<\/p>\n
Graham is committed to LSU, a decision he said ultimately came down to the relationships he built with the coaching staff and players. The coaches showed him who he could become, and most importantly, believed in him.<\/p>\n
That belief is something Graham now recognizes in the people who have helped shape his own path. <\/p>\n
\u201cI think the biggest jump I made was when I didn\u2019t have to worry about this game,\u201d Graham said. \u201cI think the biggest thing for me was doing less.\u201d<\/p>\n
Doing less meant trusting the work. It meant letting go of the pressure to perform perfectly, and it meant remembering why he fell in love with baseball in the first place. <\/p>\n
\u201cHaving fun is a big thing,\u201d Graham said. \u201cI grew up just so excited to go take grounders, especially with my brother. Just so excited to go play baseball.\u201d<\/p>\n
Now, as he stands one step closer to representing his country, Graham is carrying that feeling into the present. <\/p>\n
\u201cI know there\u2019s so much talk on social media about next year, whether it be the draft or college, just so many things forcing you to look ahead,\u201d Graham said. \u201cI think the biggest goal for me is to take one day at a time, make someone else\u2019s day, and just try and create relationships that can last a lifetime.\u201d<\/p>\n
Take it one day at a time, trust yourself, don\u2019t compare and, above all, have fun. For Graham, it all comes back to believing in himself. <\/p>\n
Marek may have helped show Graham what was possible, but Graham\u2019s journey is becoming his own. <\/p>\n
\u201cI know that I\u2019ve already won,\u201d Graham said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Brotherly competition is something Graham Houston has known all his life. The Houston brothers have spent years pushing…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":415259,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[56,58,57],"class_list":["post-415258","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-houston","tag-houston","tag-houston-headlines","tag-houston-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/415258","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=415258"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/415258\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/415259"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=415258"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=415258"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=415258"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}